The present invention relates as indicated to a lightweight boat construction, and relates more particularly to a boat constructed primarily of buoyant, expanded polymer material, appropriately reinforced to strengthen and stabilize the same, and a method for making the boat.
The use of lightweight buoyant plastic foam, for example, styrofoam or comparable materials, is known in the art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,866,985 discloses a boat made of buoyant plastic foam specifically designed for use by children and teenagers, and appropriately sized for that purpose. U.S. Pat. No. 4,662,303 discloses a fishing boat which is partially constructed of a positive flotation foam material, encased in metal to form a deck and keel construction. U.S. Pat. No. 4,827,859 discloses a fishing boat made of a single piece of expanded copolymer material formed to provide two distinct pontoons and a connecting panel, with the pontoons at the front of the boat being secured together by a tie rod. U.S. Pat. No. 4,517,911 also discloses a pontoon boat in which spaced pontoons are filled with a closed cell foam material, with the walls of the pontoon and the deck being formed from sheet aluminum.